Today we’d like to introduce you to Elizabeth Hoffmann.
Hi Elizabeth, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
It began with my family; as a child, my parents were storytellers. We would travel around the southeast to festivals about four times a year.
They taught me how to listen. I enjoyed studying people and their patterns, culture and emotions; stories allowed me to do that.
I became an avid writer, reader, and believer of embodied truths.
Yoga found me when I was nineteen and it saved me from a crushing eating disorder, gave me self-discipline wrapped in compassion. It was deeply healing. I became a hatha yoga teacher in my mid twenties and began teaching from the heart.
By 2015, teaching yoga wasn’t satisfying me anymore and I turned to massage therapy.
Throughout my therapeutic training, I learned both sides of the bodywork world–subtle energy and physical anatomy. I loved bridging Reiki and Shiatsu with proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation and studying the unique kinesthetic movement patterns the body makes.
Once I graduated, I opened my own practice, Honeysuckle Healing, I started offering massage therapy and private yoga sessions and I kept learning.
I went through women’s health training with Leslie Stager. I became a Reiki Master. I apprenticed with a rehabilitative massage therapist with a successful practice. I studied trauma-informed yoga models combined with polyvagal theory protocols. This led me to continue studying the nervous system more closely as a facilitator. I learned and practiced many modalities before simplifying to a gentle therapeutic model influenced by John Barnes’ approach. I also studied Anatomy Trains. I learned to use tools like gua sha, silicone cups, hydrotherapy, aromatherapy, and I integrate Reiki into most of my sessions. Working with every layer of the body is a part of the way I share healing with my clients.
Wildly (or not,) I began formally studying astrology about three years ago. I was noticing elemental patterns in myself, my clients, across my practice. Everyone would come in with a headache or inflammation on the same day and I kept thinking, “Why?”
I had noticed Ayurveda (the ancient Indian system of healing) and Traditional Chinese Medicine used the elements as remedies to balance the body-mind-spirit. These systems are ancient, still widely practiced and successful so I knew there was something important my Western education may have missed.
I began seeing the bridge between individual healing protocols and more universal protocols through my treatment successes and failures with clients. There was understanding the ecology of our individual bodies then the ecosystem our bodies belong to–the earth and the influences in our immediate environment.
Astrology gave me a language for this and a way to recognize cosmic weather patterns in myself and my massage clients.
Being able to use my knowledge of the elements in the birth chart has positively impacted by ability to treat each individual with more specific feedback for their needs. It has also given me more perspective on universal themes the collective may be working through so the patterns are clear to me when clients come in with similar complaints on some days.
I currently offer massage therapy, bodywork, and Reiki sessions as well as astrology consultations.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I have had obstacles in the form of health issues.
Shortly after enrolling in massage therapy school, I began experiencing painful physical illness regularly. It was also a complete mystery what the source was for a couple years.
While I worked tirelessly with a medical team to figure out what my body was saying, I held fast to my massage therapy education, the community I’d created there, and the healing experiences that I was blessed to have.
As a result, I took my time through my education which allowed me to embody what I was learning more deeply.
This part of my experience, even though it was scary and painful, blossomed into a deeper understanding of holding space for others when they are in pain and feel uncertain about their bodies.
Eventually I was able to manage my symptoms and relate to my pain, my body and myself with positive regard.
I take what I learned from these personal experiences and translate them into embodied, compassionate facilitation for the journey of having a body.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
In the bodywork realm, I am known for creating integrated treatments combining gentle, relaxing Swedish massage, myofascial release techniques, gua sha, cupping, breath work, guided visualizations, sensory nourishing aromatherapy, hydrotherapy and invitations for personal attunement. Everyone can go as deep into their restorative healing experience as they choose. Every session is different.
My work serves those who have chronic pain, are in recovery from surgery, particularly with repetitive use injuries, patterns, etc. I work well with fibromyalgia, Mast Cell Activation Syndrome, those who are hypermobile/EDS, and neurodivergent folks. I work with folks who identify as disabled and those that are still in their able-bodied phase of life.
Most often, my client’s comment, my hands always find the spots that hurt and my bodywork gives a feeling of authentic love and care. I am proud of these words, I aim for every person to feel like a human when they are with me, to know they are witnessed in their healing process is part of my work I take so seriously.
In astrology consults, I am known for identifying patterns in the chart and delivering the shadow work invitations with compassion and clarity. I wield my insights with kindness and humor, though I am known for being blunt. I have been told I have a way with words that inspires. I aim to shine a light on how to grow with your nature, working with your elemental self through the chart using awareness, acceptance, accountability, self-discipline and joy. By knowing our nature, we can be better for ourselves and our community. This is one of my credos.
Let’s talk about our city – what do you love? What do you not love?
What I love about Corvallis is the people, the community of creators, activists, teachers, healers and inspiring humans never cease to motivate me to keep growing. I love the farmer’s markets and the access to incredible food we have here too.
Sometimes it can be difficult to live in such a beautiful place, I hate being inside!
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